Independence Day

Women Alive is proud to announce that we are now
officially an organization run by and for women living
with HIV/AIDS. Women Alive Coalition, Incorporated was
cultivated from Being Alive; People with HIV/AIDS Action
Coalition. Women Alive is today a community based
membership coalition, of women facing AIDS.

Together we have created an organization where women facing HIV
disease can come, where we are not clients, where we are
not "case-managed" or psychoanalyzed, where we are not
numbers, and we are not patients or research subjects.

We are simply women from a vast variety of life
experiences with one commonality, and that is that AIDS
has had a significantly profound and often devastating
impact on our lives.

Success

Advertisement

The incorporation of Women Alive Coalition marks the
complete success of our work in building a community of
women living with AIDS.

Our membership is comprised
entirely of women who have HIV/AIDS. There are no dues
or fees, the only requirement for full membership is
testing positive for HIV or receiving an AIDS diagnosis.
Honorary membership is offered to women who are
immediately affected by AIDS, those with a partner or
extended family member or friend who has been lost to
AIDS or has HIV infection.

A Little History

Established in 1991, Women Alive was the vision of four women living
with AIDS who were members of Being Alive. They felt the
need to create a support network for themselves and
other women like them to combat the alienation and
isolation which women with HIV/AIDS often encounter.
Their vision was to establish a Being Alive type
organization by and for women. They saw that Being Alive
had something that is not only unique but more
significantly, something that works.

Support

These women recognized that the support and opportunities for
self-empowerment at Being Alive contributed in a real
way to prolonging the lives of People with AIDS.

They believed that the medical and social services necessary
to sustain the body in pain and disease could not
substitute for the friendships and relationships of
trust established among their peers, women themselves
living with the virus. More importantly, they were
convinced that meaningful activity, through employment
or volunteer service, would be life-sustaining and
extremely beneficial to the members of Women Alive.

As such, all our services and programs are designed to be
delivered by women who are living with the disease.

Vision

The vision began to take shape. Throughout our
history, the members of Women Alive have positively
confirmed that the continuum of our programs -- from peer
to peer counseling, social support activities, treatment
education and advocacy, medical updates, leadership
training, and newsletter production -- are the foundation
of their ability to live productive and fulfilling
lives, as well as their willingness to fight off
disease, prolong good health, and maintain a sense of
well being.

Self-Governing

Being Alive realized the need
for Women Alive to become completely self-governing and
fully independent. Women Alive's fundamental goal of our
vision materialized with the non-profit status of our
own organization.

The constitution of Women Alive
Coalition, Inc. clearly substantiates that women facing
AIDS: can unquestionably and completely take command of
their own lives; make informed decisions about their
care and treatment; advocate on behalf of themselves and
each other; speak to their own needs and concerns; and
achieve their own goals and objectives.

To the membership of Women Alive: I commend your achievement
in bringing hope and strength to several thousand women
facing this disease. Your efforts in disseminating
vital treatment information, providing support networks,
treatment advocacy, and peer to peer counseling, makes
life more fulfilling and manageable for all of us who
are affected by AIDS.

You are the reason Women Alive
exists. It is your courage, determination, and dignity
in dealing with this virus that is the primary
inspiration for the Women Alive Coalition.

Now, we have a place where we can come-together, be productive and
helpful to others. By educating each other about HIV
treatments, and encouraging supportive and sustaining
relationships, we will continue to enrich and improve
the quality of our lives.

I am very proud of Women
Alive, and I want to thank the volunteers, the women,
and the members of Being Alive who have all helped to
make our vision a reality.

Collaboration

We will continue to work collaboratively with Being Alive and we
will always remember where we came from and what we have
learned from our gay brothers who are living with AIDS.

We look forward to a long productive and mutually
beneficial relationship as sister organizations. We
commend Being Alive for their cultural and gender
sensitivity and their commitment to helping all people
with AIDS from various cultures, ethnicity and genders.
"Together We Are Making a Difference" -BA

Help Us Make a Difference

The Women Alive Newsletter invites YOU to
publish your stories. We are very interested in hearing
about your experiences with medications. If there is a
story you can share which you think other readers will
benefit from, please send it in. Please provide written
consent to print your article and/or photograph.

Once an article is submitted to Women Alive it will be reviewed
by the editorial team. The editorial team makes the
final decisions as to what gets printed and what
doesn't. Please do not send your only copy.

The Body is a service of Remedy Health Media, LLC, 750 3rd Avenue, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10017. The Body and its logos are trademarks of Remedy Health Media, LLC, and its subsidiaries, which owns the copyright of The Body's homepage, topic pages, page designs and HTML code. General Disclaimer: The Body is designed for educational purposes only and is not engaged in rendering medical advice or professional services. The information provided through The Body should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or a disease. It is not a substitute for professional care. If you have or suspect you may have a health problem, consult your health care provider.